Posted By Allergic Living On 2011/01/11 @ 2:47 pm In Food Allergy | No Comments

Best Label of the Month Award

We’ve got to hand it to the people at Kitchen Basics: they “get” people with allergies and celiac disease. We love that their selection of stocks such as chicken, beef and vegetable are not only healthy and low-sodium – but now allergy-friendly and gluten-free, too.

“We strive to reduce the risk of allergen reactions by specifying that our ingredients must not contain milk, eggs, peanuts, glutens, soy, tree nuts, fish, shellfish or corn,” says the company. (The one exception is the clearly marked seafood stock.)

We also love their “fresh” humor. The thorough allergen statement on the label, notes: “we do not autolyze, hydrolyze, add or produce MSG.”

If you’re always on-the-go, you don’t have time to nurse homemade stock on the stove. Getting help from a company who understands allergies and celiac disease, and who makes tasty, health-conscious stocks, gets two thumbs up.

Diners at Subway in the Dallas-Fort Worth and Tyler/Longview in Texas have gluten-free options as of January. The restaurant chain has decided to test out safe options for those with gluten sensitivities.

Gluten-free bread rolls and brownies will be individually wrapped. Employees will cut the rolls with individually wrapped knives which will be thrown out after one use. The same employee will make the entire sandwich in order to ensure that only one pair of hands touches the sandwich, thus reducing the risk of cross-contamination with gluten-containing products.

Employees have been trained on how to take precautions and to avoid gluten contamination with the meats, cheeses and vegetables.

Dining out while away from home has gotten healthier and friendlier for those celiac disease and some other dietary needs – if you’re staying at a Fairmont Hotel, that is.

Fairmont’s newly announced menu, Lifestyle Cuisine Plus, was developed by chefs at the chain’s 64 hotels around the world under the supervision of Katya Baxter, a nutrition consultant. Chefs trained to deal with specialized diets will prepare the dishes on this menu.

The dishes are designed to cater to people living with celiac disease, diabetes, heart disease and those on macrobiotic, raw and vegan diets. The menus will change every season to reflect local food finds.

Although the menu does not cater specifically to those with food allergies, the attention to special dietary needs is a plus in our books. Furthermore, Fairmont Hotels does encourage those with food allergies or food sensitivities to speak to their hotel’s chef to come up with safe food choices during their stay.

Afterglow Cosmetics

Kudos to Afterglow Cosmetics: a natural line of mineral makeup that is gluten and soy free.

Afterglow is also pleased to disclose all ingredients, as well as the fact that they do not use any of the skin irritants commonly found in other cosmetics. These include parabens, phthalates, petro-chemicals and fragrance.

Wouldn’t it be nice to get back at your allergens sometimes? Well in this free app designed for the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad, you get to “attack back!”

The game starts off with a young boy going to sleep. In his dream state, you navigate through baseball games, grocery store aisles and more as you battle it out with everything from pet dander to peanuts.

Developed by a father and son with food allergies and asthma, this game is sure to be fun for both kids and adults. www.allergiesattack.com[4]